Alice slowly woke up, holding her aching head. She opened her eyes gradually, trying to cope with the pain. As she looked around, she saw the silhouette of her grandfather smiling at her while she was still half asleep.
"Grandpa?" she unintentionally uttered.
"Ugh... Grandpa? I'm not your grandpa, Alice..." the person looking at her replied.
The silhouette that resembled her grandfather slowly transformed into someone she knew at that moment, Joe Walker.
"J-Joe?"
"Why are you so surprised? Is it strange for me to be here after you woke up from fainting?"
"Eh? I fainted?"
"Don't you remember? A coconut fell on your head, luckily you were wearing a helmet. I didn't expect your body to be that weak. Is it because you're still a child?"
Alice tried to sit up, saying, "I'm not a child anymore! It's all because of this small and weak body of mine...," Alice said, slightly irritated.
Joe Walker, not wanting to argue with a sick person, muttered, "What's the difference?"
Alice looked at Joe Walker, confused by his actions. She realized she was inside a transparent tent. She even saw Maria walking outside the tent.
"A tent? But it's big enough to be called a tent."
"This is a medical room, Alice. I'm currently preparing medicine for you."
"Ha? You? Making medicine? Are you a doctor?"
"Ah, yes, I used to be a doctor," Joe Walker tried to lie.
"Wow, that's impressive! Is your memory starting to come back?"
"Y-yes, you're right, but only certain memories," Joe Walker lied again.
"Oh, thank goodness. I hope your memory fully returns, right?" Alice smiled at Joe Walker.
"Y-yes, you're right, I hope so," Joe Walker lied again. Even though he lied, his concern for Alice was genuine. "For now, just lie down, I'm preparing the medicine for you."
"No need, Joe, I'm not in pain anymore. My head is just a little dizzy."
"No! Don't you remember you're the only one who can drive? If you have a headache, who will drive? Do you want to rest until your headache is completely gone before we continue the journey?"
Alice sighed and said, "Alright, how long until the medicine is ready?"
"Just about 5 more minutes. For now, lie back down there."
"Alright," Alice said, looking towards Maria.
"Don't worry, I'll also keep an eye on Maria. Just relax and lie down to recover quickly."
"Fine, I'll do as you say," Alice lay back down and tried to close her eyes.
Joe Walker smiled and focused on preparing the medicine with various powders on the table in front of him. His hands moved as if controlled by someone else. He allowed it to happen, knowing that more information was entering his mind as he let his body move on its own.
Joe Walker looked towards an empty seat next to the bed where Alice was lying down. He saw a mature woman in a pink top and a brown skirt sitting there, she laughing at joe walker.
"Ahahaha, this little girl called you grandpa earlier, ahahaha."
"Ugh, I wanted to be called brother. Why grandpa? Do I look that old?"
"I don't think so, I saw her dream when she fainted. She dreamed of her grandfather whose whereabouts are now unknown. I think that's the reason?"
"Hmm, so that's the reason."
That woman and Joe Walker communicated using a newly learned telepathy. Alice couldn't hear their conversation.
Joe Walker, still letting his body move on its own, asked, "hey, can I ask you something?"
"What?"
"How can you control my body without possessing it?"
"Oh, so you don't know about that. I thought you were experienced about something like this. It's because I use my energy. From the beginning, this body and voice of mine are just visualizations to introduce myself to people like you. But it's strange that you don't know this?"
"Yes."
"Then why can you see me? You've also traveled through time to see my family's past, right?"
Joe Walker looked surprised and said, "I know it! So you're really Yumi and Eliza's mother?"
"Yes, I am their mother," that woman said, smiling.
The encounter between the woman and Joe Walker was not too complicated. Let's go back to the moment when Alice just fainted.
At that time Joe Walker immediately panicked and carried Alice. Maria also looked guilty of her actions.
However, Joe Walker restrained himself from getting angry. He saw that Maria already felt guilty first. This made Joe Walker think that it might be the right time for Maria to reflect on her actions herself.
Despite this, Joe Walker's concerns continued to rise. Although he knew it might be a trivial matter. he was also aware that Alice might be hiding something from him. Maybe Alice has an underlying illness that could worsen her current condition. Even though it may not be true, her current thoughts still make her afraid.
"Hey, do you want our help?"
At that moment, two people approached Joe Walker, introducing themselves as a married couple. The husband's name was Alex and the wife's name was Violet.
They offered to help Joe Walker, but also asked for his help too. They began to discuss and reach an agreement.
Suddenly, Maria asked, "Joe, who are you talking to?"
Joe Walker, surprised by the question, explained that there was a couple willing to help them. However, Maria insisted that there was no one else but herself, Joe Walker, and Alice in that place.
At that moment, Joe Walker then understood that the married couple who want trying to communicate with him were not human.
Ghosts?
Joe carefully observed the couple who were smiling awkwardly at him. He felt like he had seen the faces of the couple before. He then tried to recall some things that might be related to the couple.
Little by little, Joe remembered that the couple were the parents of the two girls whose sad endings he had witnessed when he was see the past at the last night.